Pressed by Trump, OPEC Fears Oil Glut’s Return

If the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its nonmember allies including Russia pump too much oil into the marketplace to make up for expected shortfalls from coming sanctions on Iran, those actions could bring back the same oversupply problem the cartel just conquered in April. Many in OPEC also fear it could also expose the real limitations of the group’s production capacity. At the Algiers meeting, OPEC decided not to act —committing only to hold output caps steady. Most OPEC delegates don’t want prices above $80 a barrel, one OPEC official said. But the group “is worried about over edgingsupply” because it expects demand for its oil to fall in the first half, he added. The reason for this cautious attitude, according to people who attended the consultations over the weekend, is mounting concern that Iranian oil losses may be offset by lower demand for the cartel’s […]